Epic Games, Apple Reveal Arguments Ahead Of Antitrust Trial

Epic Games and Apple outlined their arguments in a dispute over Apple’s control of the App Store before an antitrust trial set to begin next month through their own separate legal filings, CNBC reported.

Apple will contend that its 30 percent commission basically matches that of digital stores such as Google Play or shops for video game hardware, while its fee has fallen over time. It will also contend, among other arguments, that its policies have brought about a boom in the software sector and led to more security and safety for users.

However, Epic will contend that Apple manages the single avenue to install software on an iPhone by the way of the App Store. It will also argue that Apple harnesses its Apple Review workflow for anti-competitive ends, among other claims.

Epic Games, which is renowned for its Fortnite program, has been in a legal disagreement with Apple since 2020, when Epic Games attempted to steer clear of Apple’s 30 percent App Store commission via a technology update that avoided Apple’s payments infrastructure. Apple, in turn, removed Fortnite from its App Store.

In March, news surfaced that Epic Games is suing Google in Australia over allegedly anti-competitive behavior that contravenes the nation’s antitrust rules. “Google gives the illusion of being open by making arguments about the presence of alternative app stores on its platform or allowing direct downloading of apps from third-party providers, but in reality, these situations are so rare that they barely make a dent in the monopoly of the Android OS,” Tim Sweeney, Epic founder and chief executive officer, said in a March blog post.

And in February, Epic announced that it had filed an antitrust complaint against Apple in the European Union (EU) in a bid to seek a more balanced playing field for software companies and consumers. “What’s at stake here is the very future of mobile platforms,” Sweeney said in a February blog post. “Consumers have the right to install apps from sources of their choosing and developers have the right to compete in a fair marketplace.”